Here's a rip from the official Jim Beam site : (Please respect the copyright.)In 1795 Jacob Beam, the great-grandfather of the legendary Jim Beam, sold his very first barrel of bourbon in Washington County, located in the heart of Kentucky.If you ever get down to Bardstown, Kentucky you can visit the Oscar Getz Museum of Whiskey History, with a collection spanning 225 years dating from pre-Colonial days to post-Prohibition years, including what is believed to be the very first whiskey still.In 1820 Jacob's son, David Beam takes over the reigns of the Beam family distillery.David M. Beam, father of Jim, was one of the great bourbon distillers of all time. He handed down distilling secrets and wisdom that after two-hundred years are still in the mix, helping to make Jim Beam Brands one of the greatest, and most continuous family businesses in the history of the country.In 1853 David M. Beam, son of David, takes over the Beam family distillery and moves it to Nelson County, KY.In 1880, James B. Beam began working at his father's distillery, learning the family bourbon making secrets as the fourth generation of Beams to carry on the family tradition. For 67 years, Jim Beam remained in control of his family fortune. This included surviving the 14-year span of Prohibition, during which Colonel Beam ventured into fruit farming, rock quarries and coal mining. Within four months after the end of Prohibition in 1933, he was back doing what he knew and loved best -- making bourbon. Near the age of 70, Jim Beam relocated and constructed an entirely new, bigger distillery in Clermont, Kentucky, near his Bardstown home.In 1894 Jim Beam takes over the family distillery.James Beauregard Beam was only 30 years old when he took over the family distillery, a year before its one-hundredth anniversary in 1895In 1895 Jim Beam Bourbon celebrates Centennial Celebration.In 1933 With the repeal of prohibition, the James Beam Distilling Co. of Clermont, Kentucky, was incorporated on August 14, 1933.In 1946 T. Jeremiah Beam, Jim Beam's son, was listed as President and Treasurer of the James Beam Distilling Co.The legendary Jim Beam, the fourth generation of Beams to carry on the family bourbon-making tradition established in 1795 by Jacob Beam, gathers with his family in 1910 outside his historic home in Bardstown, KY, including his son T. Jeremiah Beam, his daughter, Margaret Beam, and his father David Beam.In 1951 F. Booker Noe Jr., currently Master Distiller Emeritus of Jim Beam Bourbon, begins working in the family distillery at the age of 21.Booker Noe's mother was a Beam, and his grandfather was Jim Beam, but even though Beam isn't his last name, Jim Beam® Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey is still his favorite of all.Booker is also a Master Distiller Emeritus, and has created his very own bourbon, Booker's. It's a true connoisseur's sipping bourbon, and together with Booker's other "small batch" bourbons, it's got its very own website.In 1964 U.S. Congress declares bourbon "America's Native Spirit".In 1964, Congress passed a resolution designating "Bourbon whiskey as a distinctive product of the United States." Since that time, by law, no whiskey can be called Bourbon unless it is made within the United States, according to the Bourbon formula.Why All Bourbon is Not a Whiskey, and All Whiskey is Not a Bourbon:In order for a spirit to be called a straight bourbon whiskey, it must be made from a fermented mash of no less than 51% corn and aged for at least two years (Jim Beam is aged a minimum of four years) in a new charred oak barrel. Once these basic requirements have been met, variations can be made to create distinctive flavors and aromas.In 1995 Jim Beam Bourbon® celebrates 200 years of American history and family tradition.

Here's some more from MaltAdvocate :Actually, the ubiquitous use of the word "bourbon" to describe the dominant style of U.S. straight whiskey is a fairly recent phenomenon, owing in no small part to the rivalry between the two largest producers, Jim Beam and Brown- Forman.Jim Beam, on the other hand, does not have a distillery in Tennessee. All of the U.S. straight whiskey it sells is bourbon and it invests considerable resources in promoting "bourbon" as synonymous with quality and authenticity, tweaking their rivals in the process.Since Jim Beam and Jack Daniel's are consistently the two top selling U.S. straight whiskies, talking about "bourbons" can be a problem since the term technically excludes two of the industry's top brands. (both Jack Daniels and United's George Dickel, the other Tennessee Whiskey.)Jim Beam is an example of a bourbon that uses rye, but not very much (only about 13% of the mash).

Another rip (Sorry forgot the source) :Jim Beam Colonel James Beauregard Beam was born in 1864. The Civil War was raging no far away. He died in 1947, the year of the first televised presidental address. His father, David M. Beam, was a 3rd generation Kentucky distiller. James B. made it 4 generations when he joined the family business in 1882. A few years later, after David M. retired, Jim Beam and Albert J. Hart (his sister's husband) built a new distillery to take advantage of a new railroad line. At the same time, about 2 miles down the track, R.B.Hayden was building the original Old Grand-Dad distillery. The Beam & Hart Distillery was famous for a brand the called Old Tub whiskey. Jim Beam reopened the plant in 1933 after Prohibition with new partners. He was 70 years old. The descendants of Jim Beam and his brother Park and uncle Joe have made whiskey for dozens of different Kentucky distilleries, including the ones that carry Jim Beam's name today.

The Laphroaig is matured at the distillery in American bourbon casks. In the warehouse, the Kentucky origins are sometimes evident on the cask ends, which bear stencils of Jim Beam and Jack Daniels. The proprietary bottlings of Laphroaig are at ten and fifteen years old, all from bourbon casks.

From the Whisky pilot by Uniqum Systems :The name Beam is derived from the a German by the name of Böhm who emigrated from Germany to Maryland, USA in the 18th century. The first of the family to distil whiskey was a man named Jacob Beam, back in 1795. His great grand son, David founded a distillery in Clear Springs, close to the location of the what is today the Jim Beams distillery in Clermont. Jim Beams distillery was built after the prohibition and was built from oak. It was extensively rebuilt in 1970's. They also bought a distillery in Boston, Nelson county, but the company prefer to talk of the two distilleries as Beam, therefore the address Clermont-Beam found on the labels. The company was bought by American Brands 1967.Across the road is Jim Beam's American Outpost, which introduces you to the making of fine Kentucky bourbon. You'll see the T. Jeremiah Beam House, listed on the National register of Historic Places, the country's oldest moonshine still, an 1800s cooperage museum, film, and a bourbon warehouse (free, M-Sat 9-4:30, Sun 1-4, 502/543-9877, handicapped accessible).